Lamb Fodder
by Saruwatari
Summary: Due to excellent grades, Ryou has been granted a scholarship to the most prestigious school around...where he attracts 3 dark people, and learns that everything is not as it seems. Rx?
1. The New Kid

Odori: What are you doing, you idiot?

(mumbles incoherently)

Odori: What?

I said I'm making a story with a better plot, Yam-chan! Leave me alone!

Odori: What about LL!

I don't know! I can't think of a next chapter, and it's been over a month! I have at least the next couple of chapters planned out for this one.

Alright you guys, here's the deal. I need your votes. Do you want Ryou to end up with Yami, Bakura, or Mariku? Please review and tell!

Oh, and the other pairings go as follows (for now): RebeccaxYuugi, MokubaxShizuka, maybe IsisxSeto. I don't know, I haven't decided yet. I know, a lot of het, ne? Oh well. I like mixing it up. Plus, these pairings work for what I have planned. If you guys have suggestions or requests, just review and tell me!

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**XxxLamb Fodderxxx

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**

Ryou Sasaki looked up at the huge gates that stood at the path leading up to Miyagi High. He was stunned by its massive size and elaborate decorations. They weren't kidding when they said this place was upper class.

What the hell was he doing here?

Oh, wait. He remembered now. His excellent academics had gotten him a scholarship here. Damnit, this sucked. This school was no place for a middle-class citizen like him to be.

He ran a pale hand through thick, white locks.

Here went nothing.

* * *

Nothing. Absolutely nothing came through the teen's mind as he stared blankly at the piece of paper in front of him. 

How should he know how Athens and Sparta were different? They existed hundreds of years ago, why should he care? Better yet, how would he know?

...Ok, so maybe in retrospect, he could've paid more attention in Global that week. Still, he was better than those other two slackers. At least _he_ showed up for class.

"Alright class, time's up."

Wasn't Athens in Greece and Sparta in Italy? Oh, no, wait, that was Rome...

"That means you too, Mr. Suzuki."

Crimson eyes snapped out of their daze as Yami looked up at his teacher. Shrugging, he handed in his test. It wasn't as though one failed test would kill him. It was a benefit of growing up wealthy; even if you fail in life, you still win.

Within minutes, the test was out of Yami's mind. He had bigger things to worry about. Like Bakura Ito.

For as long as Yami could remember, Bakura had been his enemy. It had started with something do with Yami's dad taking Bakura's dad's job, but Yami really wasn't even sure anymore. All he knew was that after that, Bakura started spreading lies (or his version of the truth, as he would put it) about Yami and had stolen everything of the tri-colored teen's that he could get his ghostly pale hands on.

Damn thief.

Then there was Mariku Ramessu. Originally, Mariku and Yami had been the best of friends, and Mariku would always protect Yami, happy to find people that he righteously take out his sadism on. Some even went so far to say that Mariku was Yami's guardian, protecting him like a keeper protects a tomb.

Then, one day, he snapped.

No one's quite sure what caused it, but it's safe to safe that Mariku probably got tired playing bodyguard and went to find his own fun. After all, why hurt the bully when you can _be_ the bully?

At one point, Mariku had even teamed up with Bakura against Yami, but, contrary to popular belief, Bakura wasn't stupid, and figured out that Mariku was back-stabbing him. Well, after that, it turned into a free-for-all between the three of them for the most turf in school. Each of them had their own followers (and admirers), and not one of them was going down without a fight.

Yami rubbed his temples. Just thinking about it made his head hurt.

"Ow..."

* * *

"Ow..." Ryou looked down at his wrist, which had just cramped up. 

Damnit. According to his watch he'd been filling out forms for almost an hour. He filled out his name on the last paper, and stalked over to the secretary's desk.

"There. I'm finished with these, are there any more?" he inquired. The elderly woman peered at him over her half-moon glasses.

"No, that should be all," she replied, looking back down at her work. "Here's your uniform, you only get one free. The rest you'll have to buy. I have some application forms for that that you need to fill out," she said, handing him the outfit. His face grew dismal at the mention of more forms.

"Yes ma'am, thank you."

Sighing, he grasped the packet that promised more cramping in the not-so-distant future, and exited the office. He pulled out a schedule, hoping that he could somehow inconspicuously slip into his second period class before it was completely over. He really hadn't expected it to take that long...

As he turned the corner, a pair of blue eyes followed his movements. Unbeknownst to him, the brunette looked after him down the entire hallway, azure eyes fixated on his person.

"How strange... this should certainly peek Bakura's interest." And with that, the brunette turned heel and headed back to class.

* * *

"Ahem. Attention everyone... we have someone new joining our class today." 

"My name is Ryou Sasaki. Pleased to meet you..." he trailed off as the teacher droned on.

"Now where should we have you sit... ah, next to Jounouchi is open," he said, pointing to a younger looking girl with auburn hair. Slowly, reluctantly, she raised a glove covered hand.

"Eww, be careful Bakura!"

"Don't let Jounouchi pollute you!"

"My name's Kawai!" she screeched, enraged. "Get it right, you jerks!" The teacher cleared his throat.

"Right then, next to Kawai-san. Shizuka, make room." the girl let out a small growl before moving her backpack so Ryou could sit down. As he did, he stared at her intently. She felt his glare and turned around at him, snapping, matching his stare with her own darkly lined eyes.

"You got something to look at, jerk?" Her harsh tone snapped Ryou out of his reverie.

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry," he began. "You just remind remind me of someone and.. well, um, are you by any chance related to Katsuya Jounouchi?" She froze mid-action, turning slowly to look at him.

"What if I am? How would you know him?" She peered out, her eyes barely visible slits behind her thick black eyeliner. Ryou ignored it and smiled warmly.

"He and I were good friends in my old school, Domino, along with Hiroto Honda. I'm glad to have my friend's family here in a new school. It's comforting. How did you say you were related again?"

"He's my brother," she said, eyes darkening even more. "Well, was my brother. I don't want anything to do with him now." She looked at him, daring him to ask more. He got the picture and smartly shut his trap.

Things certainly would be... interesting in this new school, to say the least.

* * *

Groan. I started this story a month ago! A month! I'm so sorry everyone, I really am. I get so much more praise than I deserve. Thank you. 

On a brighter note, methinks I like this story. A lot. Not nearly as crappy as my other ones. I even really like the scene with Shizuka, despite how unbearably OOC she was. I bet it shocked you, didn't it? I bet you thought it was Jou, didn't you? Well, never fear, everything in this story so far has a purpose, and you'll just have to wait to find out what it is. Shizuka is OOC for a reason. You'll see, you'll see. Oh, and the entire beginning of that scene comes straight from book 6 of the manga. It was hard to incorporate...

Thank you all so much for being patient! Oh, and again, please review telling me who he should end up with!

I such a review whore...

Dewa Mata!

Saruwatari


	2. Bakura's Gang

Well, because I'm a lazy bum and don't know when I'm going to be inspired to write again, I'm writing this chapter the same day I posted chapter one. Impressive? Maybe. Just wait and see how long it takes me to post. It'll probably be weeks, le sigh. Oh well.

In today's segment, we focus on Bakura and learn about his strange little gang. And of course, more Ryou. Because if you haven't figured it out by now, I'm obsessed with the little fellow. So, then, on with the story.

Pairings have been changed! It is now MokubaxRebecca and SetoxShizuka, due to a request from the lovely dragonlady222. Do not worry; these pairings actually helped me greatly in making the plot more complex and interesting, so no fears. I'm also adding in AnzuxOtogi, which will be permanent. O.o That's a really weird one, but it fits… I swear…

God, I have a lot of het. Where IS it all coming from?

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**XxxLamb FodderxxX**

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The blond laughed, tan skin flying in every direction as he wildly shook his arms, trying to quell the chuckling.

Sufficient to say, it wasn't working.

Malik Ishtar, however, was not the only one shaking with laughter. Next to him, an aqua haired boy laughed just as hard.

"Oh, man, Bakura, I thought my family was bad, but your dad takes the cake!" Malik said through his fits of laughter, pointing at the said boy.

"Yeah, well he's nothing compared to turquoise-head's tight-assed brother."

"Very funny," Noah said. "My hair is aqua." That just caused Malik to go into another fit. Bakura rolled his eyes.

"Ishtar, stop that! People are going to think you're having a seizure!" Slowly, but surely, Malik calmed himself to the point where he was sitting silently, still shaking from the force of his… "joy", but at least he was quiet.

"Hey, Bakura!" came a feminine cry from his left. "I got news for you!" The pale boy cocked an eyebrow at the girl who came trotting up to him.

"Oh, what is it Anzu?"

"There's a new kid." Bakura raised the same eyebrow again, questioningly.

"Where's the part when I'm supposed to care?" The girl just smirked.

"His name's Ryou something-or-other. Real cute. Looks just like you, only a helluva lot more innocent and feminine. I almost thought he was a girl when I first saw him." Well, she was right, she sure as hell had Bakura's attention now.

"You don't say…" he trailed off, leaning against the fence that separated him from the roof and a long drop to the ground. Not the smartest idea in the world, but then again, this IS Bakura we're talking about here.

Faintly, he heard the bell ring below him, and smiled wryly. His dad would be so disappointed in him. Bakura scoffed. Like he had any right to talk. Losing his job to that bastard of a man Yami called his father. Disgraceful.

"Yo, earth to Bakura, come in Bakura!"

Malik received yet another smirk from his leader as reward for bringing him back to reality. If there was one person Bakura trusted, it was Malik. Most people would be surprised to hear that, considering he had once been a best friend with Yami and pretty much worshipped Mariku. But that had been before. Then, Mariku had turned on Yami. Originally, Malik had been on Mariku's side, along with Bakura. Then he realized how much Mariku was hurting people, and teamed up with Bakura against him. They had been inseparable ever since.

Bakura growled under his breath. If there was one person on the entire person he hated more than Yami, it was Mariku.

Other than a mutual hatred for that… thing… the bond the held Malik and Bakura – hell, everyone in Bakura's group – together was a similar backlash against their families.

For Bakura, it was obviously his father, the spineless twerp of a human. His mother was dead, and he had his insane theories that she had been killed by a government conspiracy that wanted to use a blood sacrifice to gain the power of the gods. Yeah, he knew it was ridiculous, but that was just the kind of person he was. Ridiculous.

Malik had no parents, just his two siblings. When he was little, his mother died of sickness, and then later on, his father was murdered. It was about that time that he started hanging out around Mariku… probably for comfort. He never really did get over his father's death, and he always resented the fact that his sister Isis of all people took over the family. The Ishtars were a very traditional family, and a woman leader was… despicable.

Noah Kaiba also held resentment for a sibling, his younger brother Seto. Technically, they were twins, but Noah had come out first. He was set to inherit the entire Kaiba empire, until an unfortunate car accident when he was eleven. His back and legs were broken in three places, causing him to have stunted growth, and giving him the eternal exterior of a child. Gozaburo Kaiba had found Noah's young appearance to be unacceptable in a business tycoon, and had thus passed his company along to Seto when he died.

The last two in the group, Anzu Mazaki and Ryuuji Otogi, had similar distastes for their families. Both had dreamed that their relatives shunned. For Anzu, it was to become a dancer, and perform with the best of the best in America. On the other hand, Otogi wanted to be a game master, and was especially keen towards his strategy game called Dungeon Dice Monsters.

Speaking of Otogi…

"Have any of you guys seen Ryuuji?" There was a collective "no" through the group and Anzu gave a huff.

"Damnit, he's probably in class," she grumbled, heading towards the door back into the building. "You owe me so bad, Ryuuji. Making me go to class…"

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Ryou was lost. Lost, lost, lost, lost, lost. He also had no clue where he was, and it didn't help that the late bell for fifth period had just rung. So now he was rushing, with no particular destination in mind, and no focus on where he was going. Of course, if you apply Murphy's Law to this situation, in which the worst possible things are bound to happen, it would be a simple matter to see poor Ryou would not end up in a good position.

In fact, the position he landed in was quite the painful one, his rear bruised from his fall, books scattered across the hall.

"Ow…" It took Ryou a few seconds to realize the voice was not his own. He looked at the small boy he had knocked into, who was grasping his head in pain. Ryou amused himself for a brief second with the thought that the other male rather resembled a multicolored starfish, but then realized that he had hurt him, and felt quite guilty.

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry! I should've been watching where I was going. Are you alright?" The other boy shook his head, before looking back at Ryou.

"Huh? Oh yes, I'm fine! It was my fault, I should be asking you that!" Ryou smiled. He was comforted by the fact that there seemed to be someone even more naïve than him here.

"I'm quite alright, thank you. Late, and lost, but other than that fine." The other student's eyes widened to an impossible size.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry! You must be the new kid, right?" Ryou nodded, as the porcupine kid slapped a hand to his forehead. "I should've realized that. Here, let me see your schedule." Obediently, Ryou handed over the sheet of paper.

"Oh, good, you have study hall with me now! Come on, I'll show you the way!" he exclaimed, grabbing Ryou's hand and dragging him along. "My name's Yuugi Mutou, by the way. What's yours?"

"Ryou… Ryou Sasaki," he responded, dazed. There certainly were some interesting characters in this new school of his…

As they walked, well, ran to class, they knocked into a black ball of fluff. Ryou would've apologized, had Yuugi not been tugging his arm like a rampant animal. Said black ball growled low in his throat, before taking a good look at Ryou.

"What the… he looks just like Bakura! Mariku will want to hear about this…!"

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"Otogi! There you are!" Emerald eyes looked up as the brunette huffed over to him. Ryuuji sat on a staircase in a remote corner of the school, where almost nobody passed through. "I've been looking all over for you!" The black-haired male raised an eyebrow.

"Oh really. Tell me Anzu, what's so important that you actually came into this, how did you put it? 'Vile establishment'? To find me?"

"I got news, important enough for the boss-man himself."

"You don't say. So, what's up?" He was given an infamous Mazaki smirk.

"New kid. His name's Ryou, I think. Looks a lot like Bakura," she said, the smirk never leaving her face as she sat down on Otogi's right leg. "Really cute," she added on, watching as her boyfriend slowly absorbed her words. Ryuuji grinned devilishly.

"So, how bad does he want to get into his pants?" Anzu laughed.

"Real bad, and he hasn't even seen the kid yet. Though I got to say, from what I saw, he's a real catch." Otogi joined in the laughter.

"So what are we going to do about it, hm?"

"We're going to get them together, of course," Anzu said scoffing. "And then Bakura will reward us like always. That'll be the first step of getting out of this hellhole." She grasped his face in her hands and looked into his eyes, sapphire meeting emerald in a brilliant clash. "We're going to make our dreams come true, Ryuuji, you and I. I don't care what our parents say; we're going to make it. Both of us."

"I know, Anzu. I know." And the two of them shared a kiss as the bell for dismissal rang. When they broke apart, the sounds of students rampaging through the halls for the exits could be clearly heard.

"'Study' at my place tonight?"

"You know it."

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Wow. How weird was that? And I actually finished this in two days. That's amazing.

Yeah, I'm not an Anzu-basher, sorry to you guys who are. Tea, I despise. Anzu, I can tolerate, and can even turn into a pretty cool character.

I'm actually rather found of my AnzuxOtogi pairing, too. I don't know, it just works. Ah well, you guys know what to do if you have suggestions/requests. Just send me a review!

Dewa Mata!

Saruwatari


	3. A Long Day

Wow, this is my third chapter in two days. If I'm lucky, I'll write my entire story by New Year's and then post it periodically!

…Okay, so there's no chance of me finishing the entire story by then, but hey, a girl can dream. In the mean time, I'll just continue to write on, and do as much as I can in the time I have. Luckily, this story is just writing itself, so I don't really struggle with it or anything. I'm actually pretty pleased with it, which is… rare for me, to say the least.

Anyways, today we focus on Mariku and his gang, a truly bizarre collection of completely OOC people. Hey, I tried. Also, more with Ryou, and a brief confrontation with Bakura, not mention a party at Seto's. Yep, you better fasten your seatbelts, cause its going to be a bumpy ride!

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**XxxLamb FodderxxX**

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"Mariku! Mariku, I've got some important news!" Violent lavender eyes glared out from the shadows given off by the side of the building.

"This better be good, Mokuba."

"Oh it is, Mariku-sama!" the younger boy said, grasping his knees as he struggled to regain his breath. "There's this new kid, Ryou, and-"

"Silence!" The roar caused poor Mokuba to freeze mid-sentence, his only movement being his eyes following the cigarette butt that fell to the ground and was stomped out by a black leather shoe.

"Mokuba, you disappoint me," Mariku said, stepping out of the shadows. "You appear to be the last person to know about this. According to Rishid, Bakura's group is fully aware of his presence as well, thanks to that ridiculous dancing bitch Mazaki. Shizuka told me about him earlier this morning," he elaborated, pointing to the girl sitting to his left. "Is that all you have to report? If that's the case, get out of my presence."

"No, sir! I have one other thing. I saw him walking with one of Yami's gang… that Mutou kid. They seemed real buddy-buddy, by the way that starfish was pulling him." He waited a second as Mariku mulled this over.

"Interesting… so now even Yami has an interest in him… very interesting indeed. Shizuka, show me the picture again." The girl obediently passed her camera phone to him, where a snapshot of Ryou she had taken when he wasn't looking lay.

"Hm… I like him. He's cute, and the fact that the others want him too makes it that much more interesting. I want him." He peered through demonic eyes at the black-haired kid.

"Congratulations Mokuba, you have a chance to redeem yourself. I want this boy, and I always get what I want. Get him for me."

"Yes, Mariku-sama."

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Ryou looked up at the gray sky with worry. Of course he had missed the bus, due to his inability to find his way around, and now he was stuck walking back to his apartment, two miles away. As if that wasn't enough, it looked like it was going to rain, and he, being the genius that he is, forgot his umbrella.

"Great. Bloody brilliant."

Unbeknownst to him, a pair of deep mahogany eyes looked after him. Bakura licked his lips. The boy was everything Anzu had said… and so much more. The kid practically radiated innocence! He was definitely a virgin, and that made it so much more fun. He had to meet him.

Now.

Usually, being the bright boy he was, Bakura would not rush into things like this. He would spend time formulating a plan to perfection, and then would execute it just as well. Here's the thing.

Bakura really, really, _really_ needed to get laid.

And so, primal instinct overrode logic and sensible thinking as Bakura dove in to get his prey. His snuck up behind the pale boy and…

"Boo."

Ryou let out a yelp as his books clattered to the floor for the second time that day. He could feel his face flushing as he turned around to meet his assailant.

As their eyes met, Bakura spoke.

"Why hello there," he stated with a sly grin.

Ryou let out a small squeak as he jumped back, startled by their close proximity. Bakura walked towards him again, and Ryou matched each of his footsteps with one of his own, in the other direction. This was all fine and dandy until Ryou found himself pushed up against a tree, with no place to run. Bakura closed the distance between them and pinned Ryou to the tree with a hand on either side of his head.

"My, my, what do we have here?" He smirked at the sharp intake of breath as Ryou looked up at him.

It was… incredible how similar they were. Same hair color, same pale skin… it was like they were twins. The only differences were that his hair seemed to spike up into a style that rather resembled devil horns, and his eyes were an earthy red color, as opposed to Ryou's bright green.

"Why hello, you must be the new kid, right?" Ryou nodded dumbly. "My name's Ito. Bakura Ito. What's yours?" he asked smoothly, as he leaned down so their noses were touching. Ryou gulped, and Bakura smirked at the blush on his face.

"R-R-Ryou… Ryou S-Sasaki…"

"Ryou, hm? Pretty name. I like it. In fact, I think I like you." Ryou just stood there, eye wide and mouth open in disbelief at what he had just heard. For a long moment, the two of the just stood like that, until Ryou ducked underneath Bakura's arms and bolted.

Bakura smirked, watching him, as he became a distant silhouette. The kid was really just too easy.

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Smoke wafted through the air as the busty woman exhaled slowly, glancing over at her leader nonchalantly.

"Don't you think you were a little hard on the kid, Mariku?" The Egyptian snarled.

"No, Mai, I think I was perfectly fair with him. He knew what he was getting into when he joined up with me, he should've been prepared. I expect better from my followers." Mai just shrugged.

"You sure he knew what he was doing? From what I saw, he was only doing it to get revenge on those darling brothers of his. And lord only knows how much you've done blindly in the name of revenge." Mariku glared.

"That's different."

"Uhuh, I'm sure." She turned to the younger girl beside her, offering her the cigarette. "Hey, Shizuka, want a hit?"

"No thank you, Mai." The blonde cocked an eyebrow.

"What's wrong with you?"

"Huh? Oh nothing. What makes you think something's wrong?" Mai looked at her blandly.

"You just declined a free smoke," she said flatly. "Something's wrong."

"I said nothing. Nothing… except…."

"Except…?" Mai continued for her, showing her infinite patience.

"Except that new kid, Ryou, he knows Katsuya." Mai lips formed an "o" shape as understanding flowed through her. "He was good friends with him at his old school. My old school. Domino." The blonde nodded her head in understanding.

"I see. That… sucks ass." Shizuka laughed dryly.

"Mai, that doesn't even begin to describe it."

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Ryou had had a really crazy, bizarre day, and was really looking forward to his trip home, two miles long or not. Home was where the heart was, or in this case sanity. Yep, he was going home and nothing could stop him….

Oh, silly Ryou. Did you really think I'd let you get off that easy? Oh no, as Ryou soon found out, this day was just beginning.

For just as Ryou was snapping out of his daze from his little… confrontation, a long, black limousine stopped in front of him. Already in a state of mighty confusion from the day's events, all the poor pale boy could do was watch in an awestruck haze as the tinted windows were rolled down, revealing brown hair and piercing blue eyes.

"You," the brunet addressed him. "You're Ryou Sasaki, right?" For at least the third time that day, Ryou found himself nodding mutely. "Good. Get in the car."

Ryou just continued to stare at the boy (at least what he could see of him from behind the dark window), who was growing impatient.

"I repeat, get in."

Ryou? Earth to Ryou? Come in, Ryou!

"For the last time, get in the fucking car!"

Houston we have a problem.

The brunet, who was now at his wits' end, opened the door to his fancy limo, grabbed Ryou, and before anyone could say 'it was a one-eyed, one-legged, flying, purple people eater!' they were off. Ryou of course, being the brilliant boy that he was, took a few minutes before realizing a rather good-looking, wealthy boy about his age was kidnapping him.

And in a brilliant moment of glory, it all clicked.

"W-what the…! Who… what… what's going on? Who are you?" Ryou sputtered, trying to make sense of his situation. Poor, poor Ryou. The brunet just sent an icy glare his way, which shut him up rather effectively.

"You really don't know who I am?" Ryou observed him carefully. Now that he had mentioned it, the boy did look familiar. Almost like…

"Oh my God, you're Seto Kaiba!" The boy rolled his blue eyes.

"No shit, Sherlock. Took you long enough."

"B-b-but, what would you possibly want with me?" Seto gave an aggravated sigh.

"Honestly? Nothing. I couldn't care less about you. However, Yuugi insisted I invite you, and Yami insisted I listen to Yuugi."

"Wait, you're Yuugi's friend?"

"That's what I just said, isn't it?" came the icy reply.

"And who is this Yami?" The only answer he got was scoff from the CEO.

"And invite me to what? Where are we going? I demand that you tell me!" The businessman turned to Ryou slowly, his lips pursed together in a vain attempt to quell his anger.

"We are going to a party. At my house. Yuugi asked me to invite you, and Yami made me. You do not need to know who Yami is right now. You'll find out in time. Does that answer all your questions?"

"Um… yes?" Christ, Seto Kaiba was a frightening man!

"Good. Now, if you don't mind, I have work to do, so I'd appreciate it if you would please kindly shut your trap for the remainder of the ride."

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The first thing Ryou saw when he entered the Kaiba mansion was a multicolored blur, which proceeded to tackle him.

"Oh my gosh, Ryou! I'm so glad you could make it!"

"Y-Yuugi… can't… bre-"

"I was getting worried for a moment, you know, you and Kaiba were taking so long!"

"Need… air-"

"Did Seto scare you? I'm sorry if he did, I know he can have that affect sometimes and- hey, Seto! Put me down!" Ryou thought those blue eyes of Seto's should be coming out of their sockets by now, judging on how often he rolled them.

"Yuugi, you were suffocating him."

"Oh my gosh, I'm, so sorry! Are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine, Yuugi," he assured the smaller boy as he stood up and dusted himself off.

"Oh… well in that case, I want you to meet the others!" And for the second time that day, Ryou found himself being dragged along unfamiliar corridors by one Yuugi Mutou. Seto followed behind.

From the stairs, gray eyes followed their movements. Quickly and quietly, Mokuba stalked after them.

In (one of) the living room(s), a small group of people were now gathered. The group was composed of Yuugi, Seto, Ryou, a tan girl with long black hair, another girl with blonde hair and glasses, and a whole lot of snacks and games.

"Ryou, I'd like you to meet my good friends Isis Ishtar and Rebecca Hawkins."

"Yo."

"Pleased to meet you."

"Right then, now can we start the party?"

"Shouldn't we wait for Yami?" Yuugi looked crestfallen.

"Yami said he couldn't make it."

"You know how his parents are," Rebecca interjected. "I really pity him sometimes."

It was when she started speaking that Ryou really began to notice how young she looked.

"Um… Rebecca…?"

"Yeah?"

"I was just wondering… um… are you… actually in high school…?" She scowled at him.

"Of course I am!"

"Oh, I'm sorry," he began hurriedly. "Its just, I thought you were thirteen or something."

"I am thirteen!"

"Rebecca skipped two grades," came a voice from the right.

"Mokuba! What are you doing here?"

"It's my house too, _big brother_," came the reply with a sneer. Mokuba walked right past his brother and into the center of the group, wedging his way between Rebecca and Ryou. He took his time to study the near-albino boy. So this was his target, huh? Well, it would be a challenge. Mariku was right when he said that the others had an interest in him too. He then turned his focus to Rebecca…

Rebecca.

…And quickly turned away.

"So what do we have here? A little get together?"

"It's a party, Mokuba," Seto said through clenched teeth. "Now go away." Mokuba looked at his brother with wide eyes.

"You're having a party, and you didn't even invite me? Your own flesh and blood?" He placed a hand over his heart for melodramatic effect. "I am hurt, Seto, that is just painful." Isis looked deep in thought.

"Hm, yes. On the subject of your own flesh and blood, where is that vile brother of yours?" Mokuba gave her a flat stare.

"He's right in front of you. What are you, woman, blind?" It took all of Isis' willpower to stop her from murdering the little imp.

"I wasn't talking about Seto and you know it." Mokuba smirked.

"Oh, I get it, you mean Noah. Well, how should I know? He's probably off somewhere with Ito and _your_ brother." Isis' stoic stare turned steely.

"Malik is no brother of mine."

"Uhuh," Mokuba said. "You keep telling yourself that. As long as you two sleep in the same room at night, you can't deny it." Now Isis was furious.

"How would you know-!"

"Rishid," was the simple answer uttered.

"Rishid," Isis repeated, growling low under her breath. "I'll kill him."

Now, as one would imagine, Ryou was thoroughly confuse by this point. However, one thing did click in his mind. That name, Ito. It sounded familiar, but from where…?

"_My name's Ito. Bakura Ito. What's yours?"_

"Holy crap!" Ryou's shocked yell startled everyone, and the arguments immediately halted.

"Um… Ryou…? Are you okay?"

"Hm? Oh yes, Yuugi, I'm fine. I, uh, think I forgot my, uh, math textbook at school, that's all." Mokuba snorted.

What a loser.

"Well, fine," Mokuba stated, getting up to leave. "I can tell when I'm not wanted." With that he made for the exit. He slowed down as he was leaving, however, eyes lingering on Rebecca. The he turned heel and stalked away.

And Rebecca watched him go until he was out of sight.

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The rest of the party was rather uneventful, which, as Ryou looked back on his day, he was quite grateful for. He didn't know if he could handle any more excitement.

It was really very remarkable. It one day, _one day_, he had had a more exciting life than all of the past sixteen years combined. He had gone to a prestigious school, signed forms for an hour, got spied on lord only knows how many times, met his best friend's apparently Goth sister, got hopelessly lost, met a boy with three colors in his hair, got stalked by someone who could've passed as his twin, was picked up by a billionaire CEO of the company that controlled half of Japan, and had a party at his house with other insanely wealthy people.

One. Fucking. Day.

Ryou collapsed on his bed, exhausted. Who knew the upper class led such exciting lives?

Television really didn't do them justice.

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Holy shit. That is the longest chapter I've ever written.

And yes, I know, poor Mokuba was terribly OOC! But, I'm using manga Mokuba, who is a swearing, homicidal imp, so that should make it a little better… I hope...

Again, constructive criticism greatly appreciated, as well as requests! Don't forget to drop a review! This is your last chance to cast your vote for whom Ryou will end up with, though I think I already know.

Happy New Year!

Dewa Mata!

Saruwatari


	4. A Set Stage

ell, here we are at chapter four. It's nice to know you guys like my pairings, however bizarre they may be. Also, as my school break comes to an end, it may take me longer… much longer to update. I just wanted you guys to be aware of that.

So, what do you think, now that you've met the entire cast? I know the gangs are a bit confusing, so I'll lay them out for you again.

**Yami** – Yuugi, Seto, Isis, and Rebecca

**Bakura** – Malik, Noah, Anzu, and Ryuuji

**Mariku** – Everyone else, or more specifically, Rishid, Mokuba, Shizuka, and Mai

Sorry if that's confusing. The gangs are all very important, and each member plays a part in getting Ryou's attention. It's all very complicated.

In other news, today we head our focus back to Yami and his group, with a devious plan from Mariku's gang, another confrontation from Bakura, and Yami befriending Ryou, while thinking perverse thoughts about the poor boy. I pity Ryou, with all I've done to him.

**----------------------------------------------------------**

**XxxLamb FodderxxX**

_--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

"_No accidents on the roads today so all should be clear on your way to work-,"_

Ryou groaned as his alarm went off. Groggily, he stared at the neon lights flashing 6:15 on his clock in a lazy state. It was far too early to be getting up. It wasn't humane.

Lazily, Ryou rolled onto his back and stared up at his ceiling, the morning news still droning on in the background. A pale hand indolently flicked the alarm to the 'off' position. Doe eyes stared blankly at the white plaster above him, trying to futilely shake off the sleep from the past night. As the clock flashed 6:20, Ryou finally managed to pull himself out of bed.

In the same sleepy haze, Ryou pulled out his new uniform at put it on, first the white undershirt, then the black pants, and finally the black overcoat, doing up each of the gold buttons except for the one at the very top, which would restrict his breathing.

As he looked in the mirror he grimaced. From a distance, the black gakuran (1) didn't really look all that different than Domino's blue one. However, on closer inspection, it was clear to see that Miyagi's uniform was about ten times better in quality. The cotton was smoother, shinier. More comfortable… it almost felt like satin. Ryou didn't even know that it was possible for cotton to feel like satin!

Ryou sighed. Just another sign that he didn't belong at Miyagi High.

He made his way to the kitchen of his one floor house, where he heated up some miso soup and plain rice, to lazy to grill up fish to add in (2). As he picked at his rice, he mulled over the previous day's events.

It was kind of hard to believe, actually. So much had happened yesterday, it was a blur. A really confusing blur.

He vaguely considered the idea that it had all been a dream. Just for kicks, he glanced over at his calendar, which had Monday clearly crossed out; meaning yesterday was all too real. Ryou rubbed the bridge of his nose with his forefinger and thumb. How was he going to survive?

Sighing, he placed his dishes in the sink and grabbed his bag and coat. He hurriedly stepped outside; he was running late and might have missed the bus. However…

"Finally, it took you long enough. Get in the car."

…It didn't look like Ryou would be taking the bus this morning.

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"Mokuba, hurry!"

"I'm going as fast as I can Shizuka!"

"Well it's not fast enough!"

"Look, Shizuka, I'm almost done. Why don't you go check on Kujaku-senpai?"

"Fine. Just pick up the pace."

Mokuba made a clucking noise from his place in front of the computer. While all three of the Kaiba brothers excelled in the technology department, each had a specialty.

Mokuba's was hacking. And thus, he hacked away.

Really, his skills were the only thing that had kept his group with passing grades. Especially Mariku, who barely showed up a day a month, if even. Had Mokuba not hacked into the school system, he surely would've repeated multiple grades.

Though, Mokuba thought idly to himself. They'd probably being seeing more of him now that the new kid was around.

Outside, in the hallway, Shizuka was checking up on Mai. The busty woman had been keeping guard outside.

"Mai-senpai, is everything alright?" The blonde cocked an eyebrow at the younger girl's arrival.

"Hm? Oh yeah, everything's great. It's too easy to manipulate the testosterone in the hall monitors." Just as she finished speaking, a boy with scraggly gray hair and sunken cheeks spotted them.

"Hey! You two! What do you think you're doing? You're supposed to be in class!" Mai waited for the boy to come up to them before leaning down, allowing her cleavage to show.

"Oh, Bonz, sweetheart, I'm so sorry. This is my entire fault. You see, I was having a really stressful day, so I left the classroom for some fresh air. Shizuka, being the dear she is," she said, wrapping one arm around the red-haired girl, but doing so that her breasts were still in full view. "Came with me. I know its wrong, but could you please let us off, just this once?"

"W-well…"

"I promise it won't ever happen again."

"I-I guess I c-c-could let it go j-just this once."

"Thanks hon, you're a dear." She pecked his cheek. "See ya around."

"Y-Yeah. Bye." Mai watched him go, waiting until he was around a corner before smirking. Shizuka let out a small giggle.

"See? I told you. Too easy."

"Hey! You guys! I got it!" Both girls turned their heads to the raven-haired boy, who came towards them with a devious grin.

"So, you changed it?"

"Yep," he said.

"So…?"

"So," he began. "Ryou Sasaki's partner for the upcoming literature project is now officially Mariku."

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As soon as Seto had stopped the car, and Ryou had stepped out, Yuugi had launched himself at the pale boy.

"Hey Ryou!"

"Oh… hello, Yuugi." Mentally, Ryou sighed. He supposed he should get used to this. Then he looked down at the boy hugging him, and equally reprimanded himself. Yuugi was just trying to be friendly, not annoying. Ryou should've been grateful.

"Oi, Mutou, get off of him, he's suffocating." The smaller boy looked up at the brunet who had addressed him, and blushed, smiling sheepishly. Slowly, he removed himself from Ryou.

"Ah, right Seto-kun. Sorry about that Ryou."

"It's fine, Yuugi." The short kid smiled more confidently.

"Hey, Ryou, let's go meet up with the others!" Smiling softly, Ryou allowed Yuugi to drag him away from the Kaiba brother and limo into the school, where they ran into Isis. The Egyptian girl was waiting by herself. She stood to the side, away from the other girls dressed in the exact same uniform. The Miyagi High girl's uniform consisted of a black long-sleeved shirt with a collar, and an indecently short black pleated skirt, all of which were outlined in gold, matching the boys' gakuran.

"Hello there, Yuugi, Ryou." She glanced up behind them. "Seto." A grunt of affirmation came from behind them, and Ryou looked back to see that Seto was indeed there. Isis nodded her head in response.

It was just a guess, but Ryou had a hunch these two weren't big talkers.

"So, Isis, where's Rebecca?" The tan girl put a finger to her chin and tapped, thinking.

"I believe she went to Takei-san's class early today. She said something about a make-up French exam." Ryou looked perplexed.

"French? Why French?"

"Rebecca is studying three languages," Yuugi explained. "English, for obvious reasons, Arabic, because her father is an archaeologist, just like my grandpa, and French, because she thinks it's romantic." He shrugged. "I'll never understand girls."

"You three should get to class," Isis interjected, and Seto was off before she could finish her sentence. "The first bell is about to ring." Sure enough, no sooner had she finished her sentence, the bell had rang. Ryou looked up at her with wide eyes.

"How did you do that?"

"It's just something Isis does," Yuugi interrupted, tugging on Ryou's arm. "She can explain later. We have to go, Ryou, or we'll be late for gym!"

The word late sent off warning signals is Ryou's head. His mother, while she was still alive, had always told him that tardiness was an excellent way of making a horrible first impression, and considering how physically unfit he was, Ryou realized that he needed to start off on as good a foot as possible. Thus, as Yuugi shot off down the halls, Ryou was close on his trail. They just barely made it into the gym before the late bell rang. Both of them were exhausted when they got there, and slumped against the padded wall. However, both were snapped out of their peaceful rest when the gym teacher began talking.

"My name is Coach Karita, and I'll be your gym teacher for the next few months! There are important things to know in this class…"

"Scary guy, isn't he?" Ryou asked Yuugi, who just nodded his head. To their side, there was a brief laugh, and both of their heads turned to face the speaker.

"You think Karita is scary? Ha, you haven't seen anything yet." Ryou's eyes widened.

"Y-you!"

"Bakura!"

"Yeah, that's me. What about it, shrimp?" the white-haired fiend asked, glancing over at the vertically impaired boy.

"W-what are you doing here?" Bakura rolled his eyes, and reached into his pocket, drawing out a paper.

"It's time for gym," he said pointing to the schedule.

"No, I mean, what are you doing in school?" Bakura closed his eyes and leaned up against the wall, resting his head in his palms, which were behind him.

"It's my choice. Why, you got a problem with it?" Yuugi looked down to the floor.

"W-well, no, but…"

"But I do," came a new voice. Bakura cracked open one eye and stared at the newcomer, his grin turning into a frown. Meanwhile, Ryou could feel his eyes go even wider.

The new boy looked almost exactly like Yuugi! Well, except that he was taller, and his eyes were a piercing scarlet, rather than violet. Still, between Ryou and Bakura, and Yuugi and this new kid, one would've thought it was Bring-Your-Identical-Twin-to-School-Day.

Bakura's eyes were both closed again, though he was still frowning. "Bugger off, Yami, nobody asked for your opinion."

Ah, so this was the infamous Yami. Made sense. Ryou could feel the animosity between him and Bakura, almost as if it was a solid object.

"I don't need an invitation to share my thoughts, Bakura." Ryou looked on in awe. His voice held so much authority! "And right now, I'm thinking you just said the wrong thing to one of my friends." As the two enemies had a glaring contest, Ryou looked Yami up and down.

He wasn't that tall. In fact, Ryou was taller than him. At the same time, he held himself so calmly, so confidently, so regally…. The word 'king' came to mind.

And those eyes… Christ, those eyes could look through your very soul!

However, the tension in the air was getting thicker by the minute, with Bakura gritting his teeth and Yami clenching and unclenching his fists. Ryou swore one of them was going to hit the other when suddenly:

"Bakura Ito, come get your uniform and locker number." Bakura looked over at the table where the other boys had lined up, and with a snarl towards Yami and a wink towards Ryou (who of course, blushed profusely) he stalked off towards the table. Yuugi let out a sigh of relief and collapsed against the wall. Ryou's shoulders visibly relaxed as he looked over at Yami with a grateful expression.

"Um, Yami right?" he asked softly. He felt like he was performing a great blasphemy like a commoner speaking to royalty. "I'm Ryou. Um, thank you for… stopping Bakura."

"Mm," came the grunted response.

"You see, he seems to be after me for some reason, and I don't understand why."

Ryou may not have understood, but Yami sure as hell did. His cheeks were still rosy and breath short from the run to the class, and the commotion that followed. Of course, Yami's mind began reeling at the possible other situations where Ryou could be panting and sweating, most likely with a little moaning involved, as he looked Ryou up and down. Ryou began to notice the appreciative stares Yami was giving him, and became slightly uncomfortable as he felt Yami undressing him slowly with his eyes.

Yuugi, of course, remained oblivious.

"Well, Ryou," Yami stated, his voice low and commanding. "It's a pleasure to meet you." He held out his hand as the gleam in his eye turned to a friendly shine. Ryou shook his hand, feeling instantly more comfortable with the change in expression. The rest of the class was rather uneventful for those three. Yami and Ryou found they had something in common in that Ryou was theatre buff and loved acting, and Yami was one of the three heads of Stage Crew at Miyagi High. They chatted it up for quite some time until Karita came by with announcements.

However, on the other side of the room, Bakura was sulking next to Otogi, who he had found after he had gotten his uniform.

"That goddamn Suzuki! Who the hell does he think he is?" Ryuuji patted him on the back.

"There, there, fearless leader. No worries, ne? You're target's that Ryou kid, not Yami, and last I heard, Anzu was on the case." Bakura grumbled under his breath and Otogi laughed. "You're just a big sore loser, aren't you Bakura?"

"Shut it, Ryuuji."

"Alright class!" came Karita's voice from in front of them. "This is an announcement from the Theatre Department. They wanted me to tell all you little wimps that the play this year will be the Prince and the Pauper." He motioned to two kids beside him to hand out flyers. "Don't know why I needed to tell you, though," he added more quietly, with a bitter tinge behind it.

Bakura rested his chin in his hands as he mulled that over. The Prince and the Pauper, huh? He was actually familiar with that play. The story of a prince and a peasant boy who look exactly alike and switch places for a day so they can-

Whoa, wait, back up a second.

_Look exactly alike._

He glanced over at Ryou across the room, and noticed his light counterpart looking very excited over the news of the play. He leaned his head against the gym wall, closed his eyes, and grinned slyly.

This would be too easy.

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1) Gakuran – A traditional Japanese uniform with a stiff-standing collar. It's what Domino High uses.

2) A typical Japanese breakfast consists of rice, miso soup, and other assorted things such as grilled fish, pickles, or onigiri.

So, yeah, I really did make you guys wait almost a month for this crap. Sorry.

On another note, Jazhira likes this story! (Does the One-of-my-Favorite-Authors-Likes-my-Story Dance). All hail! And of course, thanks to all my other reviewers who keep on giving this review whore support!

Another thing, pairings have been chosen! The stage has been set for this wonderful (pffft) story! Oh, and the two "losers" are going to be a pairing as well, so it'll either be Deathshipping with side Darkshipping, Tendershipping with side Clashipping, or Fragileshipping with side Psychoshipping.

Oh, and one more thing. This story will become rated M, in the not-so-distant future.

Also (yeah, I lied), I made my bestest friend in the whole wide world draw me a picture of what the girls' uniform looks like. Here the link:

http/ www . deviantart . com / deviation / 28135170 /

So I think that about sums it up. Please review!

Dewa Mata!

Saruwatari


	5. Confrontations

Ack! Bad, Audrey, bad! What on Earth have you been procrastinating for? Ridiculous, I am.

Right then. Here's the way overdue next chapter. I'm so, so sorry you guys. No really, I feel awful about the wait. It's completely and totally my fault, and it's because I'm a lazy, lazy, negligent girl. So again, sorry.

Well, enough of my babbling. Onwards!

* * *

"Alright class, settle down, settle down!" the voice of the Jap. Lit. teacher came through. The class promptly ignored her, and the meek white-haired boy behind her. And certainly, nobody seemed to notice the blond in the back of the classroom who seemed to be hidden in the shadows…

"I said, settle DOWN!" Everyone immediately snapped into place. "Thank you," the teacher said, smiling saccharine-sweetly at her class. "Now then, class, as some of you may know, we have a new student. Ryou, would you care to introduce yourself to the class?"

Ryou looked up at his teacher with wide eyes. What was she, nuts? Of course he didn't want to introduce himself. If anything, he'd like to avoid talking to his superiority-complexed classmates (save Yuugi, Seto, Rebecca, Isis, and Yami, of course) for the rest of the year.

"Sometime today please, Mr. Sasaki." Well, it didn't look like he had much of a choice in the matter.

"Er… my name is Ryou Sasaki… and, well, I'm… new here." Brilliance. Sheer brilliance-in-a-box. Ryou was certain that by the end of his first week, not a single person in Miyagi High would think his intelligence any more than that of a fruit fly. Fortunately for him, however, the teacher seemed satisfied with his answer, and gave a curt nod to indicate that it was the end of introductions.

"Very good. Now then, where to place you…" She scanned the room, her eyes landing on a familiar blue-eyed girl.

"Ah, it looks like there's a seat next to Mazaki. Anzu, since Ryou will be sitting near you for the remainder of the year. Would you care to step outside and explain to him what's going on?"

"Of course, Yukimura-sensei," she said, rising from her seat. "Ryou, right? Come with me." She stepped outside the room, Ryou right on her heels.

"Um, I'm sorry if this is interrupting your class-" Anzu snorted.

"Don't be. As if I really enjoy listening to that old hag anyways. Hell, you just gave me an excuse to get out of there." Ryou couldn't help the small smile that appeared on his face. Something just drew him to Anzu; she seemed like the kind of person that people could become friends with easily.

"Yeah," he agreed. "I kind of gathered that impression."

Anzu outright laughed. Bakura had chosen well, he had. "I think I really like you Ryou," she said, giving him a friendly smile. "We'll be great friends, I'm sure of it. Now let's go back in before that woman sends out a search party for us. I think roll call is almost done."

"But what about-"

"Don't worry about anything," Anzu reassured him. "I got your back, no matter what, okay?" Ryou nodded. For some reason, he just trusted what Anzu said.

As they walked back in, Ryou discovered that Anzu had made an accurate guess, as it seemed attendance was just wrapping up.

"Kazuma Yokata?"

"Here."

"Okay, I think that's it. Anyone I miss?"

"I don't believe I heard my name," came a voice from the back. Several of the students gasped; Anzu's eyes narrowed dangerously. Ryou looked appropriately befuddled.

"Mr. Ramessu, is that you?"

"The one and only," the blond replied.

"Anzu," Ryou whispered, trying to discretely get the tense girl's attention. "Anzu, who is that?"

"Mariku."

"Mariku?"

"Yes, Mariku," she replied, her eyes never moving from the blond, nor flinching as he moved towards her and Ryou, with complete disregard for school and class rules.

"Hey, Mazaki," he said, a tanned hand landing on the girl's desk. "I haven't seen you in a while."

"Thank goodness for that," she spat back, her polite words holding nothing of a polite tone. Mariku's deranged grin only grew at her comment.

"Aw, don't be like that Mazaki. I thought we were friends," Mariku continued, completely ignoring the fact that the entire class, teacher and all, had grown silent, watching their transaction.

"Cut the crap, Ramessu. I'm in no mood."

"Fine," Mariku said, shrugging. "You got me. So, seriously now. Tell me, how is our darling Bakura doing?" Anzu hissed, as Ryou's eyes grew to the size of saucers.

"B-Bakura?" His quiet comment, which was more to himself than anyone else, went unnoticed by both Mariku and Anzu, who were both locked in a battle of wills.

"None of you business," Anzu hissed back at him, her long fingernails digging into her palm from the pressure of closed fists. Mariku cocked his head at her, analyzing, when small movements of white caught the corner of his eye.

Turning to face Ryou, who was having little less than a full-fledged panic attack, his eyes took on a gleam.

"Ah, I see. So this is the prize, huh?" he asked, not moving an inch from where he stood facing Ryou, except for the sly slant of his eyes towards Anzu.

She made no response.

The class made no response.

The teacher made no response.

Ryou thought he was going to have a heart attack.

_What is wrong with this school!_

Finally, the teacher got her butt in motion, about the same time the tension became thick enough to cut with a knife.

"Ahem. Well then, Mr. Ramessu, if you'd be so kind as to take your seat…?" Mariku cocked his head towards her, same sly, slightly manic, grin on his face.

"Of course. I wouldn't want to delay your announcement of our next project, now would I?" There was a collective groan from class at the statement. The literature project had all but been forgotten with the events t hat had occurred just moments ago. The teacher scowled at their sounds of protest.

"Deal with it, this is high school. You're expected to take more responsibility upon yourselves at this point in your life."

"Yes, sensei."

"Good. Now then, as you all know, we are doing a project of literature during the end of Feudal Japan. Take a famous piece of writing from the Kamakura, Tokugawa, or Meiji periods and write a three-page report about it and the effects it had on Japanese society during that time. This project will be done in pairs-"

Several heads perked up.

"-That I have already chosen for you."

And several heads hit the desks with a simultaneous slam.

"Get over it!" That was it for Ryou. This school was nuts. The people were weird, the teachers were mental, and everyone had more than they knew what to do with it.

And here he sat, by all means normal (well, as normal as a white-haired teenager could be), and completely lost in it all.

"Right then. Pairs will go as follows."

As the teacher rattled of names, it was all Ryou could do to sit there in his seat, wide-eyed, as Anzu went between smiling at him and glaring at Mariku, the said blond smirking at her and leering at Ryou, and the rest of the class ignoring everything that had happened in the last five minutes.

"…Anzu and Hanasaki…"

Miyagi High had officially entered the Twilight Zone.

"And, let's see. What?" The teacher removed her glasses and wiped at them, making sure they were clean, before replacing them on her face. Her perplexed expression remained.

"Well then. Last pair would be Sasaki and Ramessu. Yes, that looks right."

* * *

"Hey! Bakura!" The white-haired boy started from his position against the rail on the roof. He glared half-heartedly at the Egyptian heading towards him.

"You almost killed me there, Malik." The blond cocked his head curiously.

"I did? Really?"

"Yes," Bakura grit out in his annoyance. "Yes you did."

Malik grinned. "Awesome! I almost killed Fearless Leader!" Bakura made a mental note to himself to first find new friends, then kill Malik off in his sleep.

"You are seriously deranged."

"Yeah, and you love me for it!" Malik responded cheerfully, once again deciding what Bakura felt for him. Said boy gave a derisive snort, which Malik promptly ignored. "Anyways, Bakura, I was wondering if you wanted to go out to that burger joint today."

"Nah. I'm staying late after school today." Malik looked just a tad dubious.

"The hell? Your old man actually got you to do something? What's happening to you?"

"Don't be ridiculous, Ishtar. That worthless man has nothing on me. I just… well, I have tryouts today."

"Tryouts? For what?"

"A play."

* * *

"You look glum."

Shizuka looked up from her usual position against the brick wall of the school at Mai as the older woman came into view. She smiled. Mai was always like an older sister to her.

"What are you talking about? I'm fine." Mai clucked disapprovingly.

"You shouldn't lie to your elders, Shizuka. Now you go and tell Mai-nee what seems to be the problem."

"It's that kid."

The was a pregnant pause.

"And…? I'm guessing you're talking about that new kid, seeing as he seems to be the cause of everything and anything that's been going on here." Shizuka nodded. "Right then. So tell me what he has to do with you?"

"Katsuya."

"Your brother? Oh that's right, he used to be friends with him, right?" Mai thought back on the previous conversation she had had with the younger girl. "I remember now."

"Mai… I…"

"Don't think you can keep doing it?" Shizuka raise her head. "Keeping up the charade I mean. You know, that you're a big bad, tough girl?"

"How did you know?" Mai sighed and sat down next to Shizuka.

"Shizuka, I'm not stupid. I knew from the start that you weren't of us. Me, Mariku… even Mokuba is better suited for this life than you." She leaned down until she was eye level with Shizuka. "You're a sweet girl, Kawai, you don't belong with people like us."

"Mai-senpai…"

"And!" Mai announced her stare hardening into a reprimanding look. "You most certainly don't hate your brother, no matter how hard you want to." Shizuka rested her head on her knees, and looked sadly at the black nail polish on her glove-covered hands.

"Maybe you're right."

* * *

Oh…my.. freaking…God. Sorry, sorry, sorry! Forgive me everyone! ((Dies at pointlessness of the chapter)) XP.

The plot thickens! The characters develop! The author rambles! All this and more (if you're lucky) in the next installment, whenever that will be!


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